The Stansted 15 were acting to uphold justice, not to contravene it. The state must not be able to use sweeping powers granted for the so-called fight against international terrorism to aid its agenda elsewhere.

So long as the Home Office fails to engage seriously with a case until it is in court, those without access to a lawyer will suffer serious injustice, as was recently exposed by the Windrush scandal. Meanwhile, millions of pounds are wasted in preparing and issuing cases in court, only for the Home Office to withdraw decisions which should never have been made in the first place.